The following statement has been taken from the British Swimming website.

Following the ASA Board Meeting, and earlier British Swimming Board Meeting, it has been ruled that from 1st January 2010 all competitions in England, Scotland and Wales will be applying the FINA rules below in relation to Swimsuits for swimming (excluding Masters and Open Water) competitions.

FINA rules state:-

GR 5 SWIMWEAR

GR 5.1 The swimwear (swimsuit, cap and goggles) of all competitors shall be in good moral taste and suitable for the individual sports disciplines and not to carry any symbol which may be considered offensive.

GR 5.2 All swimsuits shall be non transparent.

GR 5.3 The referee of a competition has the authority to exclude any competitor whose swimsuit or body symbols do not comply with this Rule.

BL 8.2 In swimming competitions the competitor must wear only one swimsuit in one or two pieces. No additional items, like arm bands or leg bands shall be regarded as parts of a swimsuit.

BL 8.3 From January 1, 2010 swimwear for men shall not extend above the navel nor below the knee, and for women, shall not cover the neck, extend past the shoulder, nor shall extend below knee. All swimsuits shall be made from textile materials.